Bylaws and Association Rules

Bylaws

The APA Bylaws serve as the association's constitution. They can only be amended by vote of the membership, and have remained fundamentally unchanged since they were ratified by the members a half-century ago. The bylaws establish the major structural units of APA: the Council of Representatives, the Board of Directors, the officers, the standing boards and committees, and the central office with a chief staff officer, now called the chief executive officer.

Association Rules

Association Rules, adopted and amended by the APA Council of Representatives (henceforth Council), detail the operational and managerial authority needed to conduct the affairs of the Association under the bylaws of the American Psychological Association (henceforth APA Bylaws).

The amendment or repeal of an Association Rule, or the addition of a new rule, becomes effective at the close of the meeting at which it is adopted.